CMS: Despite survey answer, no final decision on sports
State high school association expected to postpose season; CMS clarifies that 'no final decisions' have been made
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CMS tells state association it plans to ban games during remote learning
This is a sight you might not be seeing on Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools fields this fall.
by Cristina Bolling
Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools plans to cancel fall sports during remote learning, it told the governing body of North Carolina high school sports this week — though the district backed away from that position after the news came out.
The decision came to light Thursday afternoon after the district returned a questionnaire from the N.C. High School Athletic Association and said it would not allow student-athletes to play sports while in remote learning, according to an article in The Charlotte Observer.
According to The Observer, CMS Superintendent Earnest Winston’s response to the survey included an addendum to whether it would allow sports to be played.
“For clarity,” the addendum reads, “in Plan C (remote learning), our response of NO is relative to student-athletes participating in games and competitions that involve other schools. Once the school year opens (academics) we will at some point permit student-athletes to practice on our campuses.”
UPDATE, 7:24 p.m.: Five hours after The Observer posted its article, though, CMS said on Twitter that “no final decisions” have been made about fall sports and that it would await information from the NCHSAA:
The CMS board has not publicly discussed the status of fall sports at board meetings in the last few weeks.
Winston released a statement Thursday night that said his response to the questionnaire was just an expression of his “current thoughts,” not some new, final policy: “My thinking in response to questions in the pulse survey do not represent a change in the district’s position.”
A report Thursday in HighSchoolOT.com, a prep sports website, said the NCHSAA expects to postpone its fall 2020 athletic season due to the coronavirus pandemic.
A statement by NCHSAA commissioner Que Tucker posted on the organization’s website said:
We want to play sports during the upcoming school year and are making plans to do so; however, the health and safety of all participants, including coaches and other essential staff, will be a priority as decisions and plans are made.
Tucker cited Gov. Roy Cooper’s decision Wednesday to postpone the next phase of the state’s reopening until at least Sept. 11. The governor’s current order bans outdoor gatherings of more than 25 people.
CMS’s decision Thursday didn’t sit well with Tripp Roakes, publisher of the South Charlotte Sports Report, who says he worries canceling sports will come with grave consequences to many students’ mental health, college prospects and academic motivation.
Roakes said he expects some families to find ways for their students to play in other school districts that are having fall seasons, like Union County or Lancaster County, S.C., by leasing apartments or changing guardianship.
“You only get four chances to play four years of your sport in high school,” Roakes told The Ledger on Thursday afternoon. “Parents, you get one chance to do this. Your kids cannot get that year back. These are where the memories are made. Do you sit still and hope that some knight comes riding in on a horse to save everything, or do you figure out a way to get enrolled in another school?”
Roakes said several high school athletic directors he spoke with Thursday afternoon had been unaware of CMS’s decision until the Observer’s story broke.
He said he’s disappointed CMS leaders couldn’t come up with a plan to play sports safely, like other districts have done.
“You’ve taken in-person school away from (students). You’ve taken away the ability to communicate with their friends and their teachers. You’ve taken so many things away from them. What can we give back that we can do properly and keep these kids mentally healthy and give them something to look forward to and lower their anxiety? This may be more dangerous than Covid.”
Fall high school sports in North Carolina are football, men’s soccer, cross country, volleyball, women’s golf, cheerleading and women’s tennis.
Reach managing editor Cristina Bolling: cristina@cltledger.com
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Executive editor: Tony Mecia; Managing editor: Cristina Bolling; Contributing editor: Tim Whitmire; Reporting intern: David Griffith